The reality is that the universal grammar theory attempts to lay general structures that can be traced among languages. Therefore, if a constant 'X' is true then 'Y' will be equally true. It puts down how all languages expand when subjected to a given set of fundamental principles. With these principles, universal grammar enables us to try out word order prediction in languages, the phonemes, syntax etc. Several linguists hold

In the final analysis, people have been learning how to acquire language for millennia without the assistance of scientific investigation, but the need for young people to do so quickly in an increasingly multicultural country and globalized marketplace is more important than ever before because they will probably have to learn a second (or third) language at their earliest opportunity. References Birdsong, D. (1999). Second language acquisition and the critical period

Language Acquisition The language theory According to Krashen 'communication' is the purpose of a language. Focusing on communicative abilities is just as important. The relevance of 'meaning' is also stressed upon. According to Terrell and Krashen, a language has its very own lexicon. The stress on vocabulary is apparent here and language is seen as a means to 'communicate meanings' as well as 'messages'. 'Acquisition' takes place in case where people

Language Acquisition" by J. Crawford, covers how people acquire a second language, and some "persistent problems" with how we teach a second language in America today. The author briefly covers a history of language acquisition, and how early Romans used "conversational dialogues" to help teach children many other languages, and how that method gradually altered throughout history, to the "grammar-translation approach" we tend to lean toward today. He also

Finally, nativists must concede that culture and native language can shape ideas in the long run. After all, a person's cultural surroundings seem to greatly affect their interpretation of experiences over the course of their life (Bowerman and Choi 475-476). The difference in how much those cultural experiences affect an individual and their language, as well as when such effects happen, is what makes up the entire debate between

Right from the Beginning Lightbown and Spada present six proposals for teaching second and foreign language. The first of these is called "Get it right from the beginning" (138). This approach, known also as audiolingual teaching, was formed as a reaction to the grammar translation method. Lightbown and Spada (138) explain that with grammar translation, students translate a text line by line from the second language to their first language.